A middleweight fight planned for Dublin earlier this fall has been rebooked for Bellator’s return to London.
Conor McGregor training partner Charlie Ward (7-3 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) will take on Italy’s Pietro Penini (8-1-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) next month at Bellator Europe 6. Promotion officials announced the booking Tuesday.
Ward and Penini had been scheduled to meet at Bellator 227 in Dublin about a month ago, but a Ward injury took the fight off the card. Bellator Europe 6 takes place Nov. 23 at The SSE Arena, Wembley, in London. The event will simulcast on tape delay in the U.S. on Paramount and DAZN. The Bellator Europe 6 portion of the card will stream live in the U.S. on MMA Junkie.
Ward has won four straight fights after he was cut loose from the UFC on a two-fight skid in 2017. After signing with Bellator, he has four knockout finishes, including three in the first round. In June, he stopped Justin Moore at Bellator 223 with a second-round TKO.
Penini, a former Venator FC champion, will be making his promotional debut. The 26-year-old has back-to-back wins in his native Italy, but he’ll be fighting for the first time in 2019 when he steps into the cage with Ward.
With the addition, the Bellator Europe 6 lineup includes:
- Michael Page vs. Derek Anderson
- Fabian Edwards vs. Mike Shipman
- Terry Brazier vs. Soren Bak
- Denise Kielholtz vs. Sabriye Sengul
- Kent Kauppinen vs. Andy Manzolo
- Kevin Fryer vs. George Tokkos
- Charlie Leary vs. Tim Wilde
- Damian Frankiewicz vs. Aiden Lee
- Daniel Crawford vs. Robert Whiteford
- Alfie Davis vs. Myles Price
- Walter Gahadza vs. Lewis Long
- Tom Green vs. Akonne Wanliss
- ‘Super’ Shane Campbell vs. Raphael Uchegbu
- Chris Bungard vs. Mario Saeed
- Harry Hardwick vs. Nathan Rose
- Tom Mearns vs. Jeremy Petley
- Pietro Penini vs. Charlie Ward
